The head coach says a “relentless” mindset needs to prevail at Brunton Park when it comes to improving the team.

Elliot says discussions with owner Tom Piatak and chief executive Tom Lawrence have also focused on the “culture” he feels is essential to making progress.

United, 14th in the National League, head to Solihull Moors this weekend in better shape thanks to a four-game unbeaten run, in the wake of last month’s dismal 5-2 home defeat to Woking.

“I've had some good chats with Tom Lawrence and Tom Piatak, and just made my thoughts clear in terms of how we keep improving the football,” said Elliot.

“It’s about being relentless with it, making sure that we are a football club that keeps building everything around the players, around the structure and around the culture.

“That way we will be successful. I firmly believe we will be successful this year and get where we want to get to, but we don’t want to leave it to chance and hope.

“We want to make sure that everywhere a player turns at this club they only see that this club is getting better in every department and they've got to come with us, [otherwise] they will get left behind.

“It’s a good group and I think we'll get to where we want to get to. It's just that sometimes you do have to go through tough times and tough periods.”

Since the Woking defeat, Carlisle have won three and drawn one in all competitions.

Elliot says that reinforcing his beliefs has been paramount in this spell, rather than losing faith.

“We had two bad results [including a 1-0 defeat at Eastleigh] which changes mentality in terms of the way people [can look at things],” he said.

“What's been amazing is when people come and speak when I see them in the street, they are being really supportive in terms of what we're trying to do and the football we're trying to play.

Carlisle are unbeaten in four as they prepare for Saturday's trip to Solihull Moors (Image: Ben Holmes)

“It does take time, and obviously results help massively – the more results you get the more time you get – but my big thing is not coming away from what we're trying to do

“There’s a clear understanding that we want to change the dynamic of the team, and sometimes it takes time to understand that.

“It’s still not completely where we want it to be, because ideally you want to win every game and to sit on top of the league. That isn't the case at the moment.

“I do think we’ve been unlucky at times, but if you're consistently having this many opportunities, dominating games, having this many shots – there's been some crazy stats that have come out this week – it is pleasing because it shows the work you're doing and where we're getting to…but obviously frustrating because you haven't had the full rewards of it.

“The big thing for me when you go through a difficult period is you have two decisions – whether you double down on your beliefs or you don’t.

“For me, you just double down on the fact that what we're doing I believe is right, the way we coach the players too, and the relationship we have them and the way we want the culture to be is vital.

“We want to develop the club and make sure we're doing the right things on and off the pitch.

“We want that togetherness with the football and non-footballing staff. It's a brilliant place and there's some lovely people here who work so hard and obviously care about the club deeply.

“If you want to produce something, and you want to be able to get success, you can't just wish for it. You can't just hope that it happens. You’ve got to build the foundations and do all the things that help with that.”